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Jamestown/Transcript
Transcript 'Part 1' Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Rita and Moby An animation shows a man walking along a beach. He is using a metal detector and holding a big shovel in the other hand. His t-shirt reads "I Dig Metal." The metal detector starts beeping and flashing green, indicating that there is something metal in the sand. The man grins and starts to dig. He hits a hard, metal surface. MOBY: Beep! An animation shows a robot, Moby, buried in the sand. He props himself up and stands at full height, towering over the metal detector man. MOBY: Beep! The man backs away and Moby returns to his sand pile. A girl, Rita, is sitting in a chair under a beach umbrella and reading a book. RITA: You've really gotta relax. A seagull flies by and drops a letter. Rita reads from the typed letter. RITA: Dear Rita and Moby, how did England set up its first colony in America? From, Mr. Keber's class. Well, it was kind of a trial-and-error thing... emphasis on the error part. First, the English got off to a late start with the whole colonizing thing. They watched as Spain and Portugal quickly snapped up land in the Americas during the 1500s. And made a fortune in gold, silver, and sugar. An animation shows King Henry VIII in a castle, using a telescope to spy on King Philip II of Spain. King Philip II is sitting on his throne, filing his fingernails, as a squire dumps a wheelbarrow full of gold into the room. A map behind him shows all of the land Spain has colonized in the Americas, highlighted in red. RITA: England's longtime enemy, the French, were starting to explore in the north. An animation shows the telescope switch directions. King Francis I of France is looking at a map of North America. He places a small French flag on Newfoundland. The area is highlighted blue and grows larger. MOBY: Beep? RITA: Unlike its rivals, the English monarchy wasn't all-powerful. Its kings and queens shared control of the country with an elected parliament. So they couldn't just order an expensive mission to set up colonies. An animation shows King Henry VIII knocking on the door of the Parliament building. A man opens the door, and Henry VIII holds out a cup that says “please donate.” The man laughs and slams the door shut. Henry VIII storms off, chucking the donation cup over his shoulder. RITA: Instead, they outsourced the job to private adventurers. One was Sir Walter Raleigh, who claimed land on America's East Coast—some of the only territory in the Americas that no European power had claimed yet. An animation shows Sir Walter Raleigh on a large ship. Using a quill, he draws a large rectangle on a map of North America. RITA: He called it Virginia, after a common nickname for his boss, Queen Elizabeth I. Raleigh writes “Virginia” inside the rectangle on the map. Then he opens up a framed picture of Queen Elizabeth I. The frame says “The Virgin Queen” along the top. Opposite the picture is a message that says “To Raleigh. Love, Queen E” with a heart next to her name. Raleigh is blushing. RITA: Two English settlements were founded on the coast. Though neither lasted long, the queen now had a claim in the so-called New World. An animation shows a British flag on the map of North America. RITA: Little did she know or care, that exact spot already had a king. The animation zooms in to the spot where the flag is actually raised. A group of Native people look up at the flag, confused. One man wears an intricate headdress and holds a staff. MOBY: Beep? RITA: Virginia had been home to dozens of tribes and nations for thousands of years. Those who lived in the coastal region all spoke Algonquian. They called their land Tsenacommacah, which means "densely inhabited place." An animation shows a group of Native people in the forest, going about their daily life. Two men walk by carrying a hunted deer strung to a pole. A woman is tending the fire, as another woman is preparing ingredients. A few people are standing around chatting, one holding firewood in his arms. A woman walks by with a basket of fresh fish. The men wear paint on their faces and chests, while the women wear long dresses. RITA: The thick forests were a tough environment to survive in, much less create a civilization. Rival nations were in constant competition for land and other resources. In these conditions, it made sense for tribes to band together for strength. On the coast, a few of them had united to form a chiefdom. An animation shows a map of present-day Virginia. Different tribes are represented on the map with a small icon of a wigwam, or Algonquian home. Red lines connect the wigwams on the map. RITA: Each tribe had its own chief, but one was supreme above the rest. In the late 16th century, this paramount chief was Wahunsenacawh. He was from the village of Powhatan, and he adopted that name as his title. An animation shows Wahunsenecawh, an older Native man, wearing a headdress of feathers. He is walking through the forest carrying a large staff. A group of other men follow him. RITA: Wahunsenacawh was a shrewd leader: He brought more than twenty new tribes into the Powhatan Confederacy. Sometimes through negotiation… An animation shows Wahunsenacawh talking with a small group of Native people. RITA: And sometimes by force. A large, muscular Native man pops out of the bushes. He is carrying a big stick and smacking his hand with it. He towers over the group of people. The man in front reaches out to shake Wahunsenacawh’s hand in agreement. RITA: So when he heard reports of a strange people settling on his territory, it's safe to say he took it seriously. MOBY: Beep? RITA: Yup, it was 1607, and England was giving colonization another try. This time, they outsourced the job to a corporation. An animation shows a colonial man giving a black-and-white PowerPoint presentation. His slides show Jamestown on a map with The Virginia Company of London written on a banner at the top of the screen. RITA: The Virginia Company of London was a joint-stock company. Anyone could buy a share, a tiny piece of the company. When enough shares were sold, there'd be a huge pool of cash to fund the colony. On the PowerPoint slide, it shows the icon of a man wearing a top hat and monocle. A pie chart is next to him. Each slice of the pie turns into a golden nugget, and the man jumps into the pile of gold once the pie chart has disappeared. RITA: King James I gave the company a charter: the right to set up the colony and run it. The company would recruit men, supply them, and ship them overseas. Each recruit would get his own piece of land… after seven years of work. An animation shows King James giving the presenter a rolled-up piece of parchment labeled “charter.” Then the presenter is shown addressing a group of Englishmen, each with a copy of a Virginia Company contract in his hands. RITA: In the meantime, the company assured them they'd have an easy gig: gathering all the gold lying around Virginia. An animation shows a colonist in the forest, peacefully collecting large pieces of gold from a stream. RITA: As for food and shelter, the Native people of Virginia would provide. They'd welcome the English as saviors for introducing them to Christianity. The colonist is stretched out in a hammock, eating a giant turkey leg. A few Native people present him with an additional whole turkey, fresh fish, and corn. A Native person bows as a missionary holds out a cross and reads from the Bible. RITA: About 100 men signed on and set off for Jamestown, named after the King. A group of men eagerly sign their contracts and hand them in. MOBY: Beep? RITA: Uh, no… things did not go as planned. For starters, the men picked a terrible spot to settle: a filthy swamp filled with mosquitoes carrying malaria. An animation shows the colonists on the shore of Jamestown. It’s cloudy and raining. One colonist is chopping wood while another swats at a mosquito. RITA: They quickly set to work building homes and a protective wall. But supplies ran low, and the men spent most of their time looking for gold instead of food. An animation shows two men carrying a wooden log over to their campsite, while more colonists are chopping wood. RITA: Of course, they never did find any gold. Within a few months, the majority died from disease or starvation. One man is huddled in a blanket by a campfire that’s gone out in the rain. He holds a gun and his nose and ears are red from the cold. RITA: Fortunately for them, they had Captain John Smith. He led missions to explore the area, trading with Powhatan villages along the way. An animation shows John Smith leading a crew of men through the forest. He holds a gun in front of him. Another men leads a horse loaded with supplies. RITA: Most were eager to exchange food for the settlers' guns and metal tools. The colonists approach a Native man who is bent over and holding a spear. He straightens up and holds up his hand as a friendly gesture. The colonists trade him a metal axe. RITA: Wahunsenacawh allowed these exchanges to happen. Even though he knew Smith sometimes stole from Powhatan villages. He figured the English could be a valuable ally against the rival nations that surrounded his confederacy. An animation shows Wahunsenacawh consulting with other Native people in the confederacy. RITA: On one mission, Smith was captured and brought back to Wahunsenacawh. The two forged a shaky alliance, aided by the chief’s young daughter, Matoaka—nicknamed Pocahontas. An animation shows Smith standing before Wahunsenacawh with his hands tied behind his back. A young girl, Pocahontas, approaches him with a smile. RITA: She learned English from Smith, and taught him Algonquian. And she tagged along with adults on trade missions to Jamestown. An animation shows Pocahontas standing on a tree stump as Smith kneels down to meet her at eye-level. He is saying something and points to her shoes. A speech bubble from Pocahontas says “moccasin.” RITA: Her presence was like a signal that a trading party had come in peace. The animation zooms out and shows that a trade is happening nearby Smith and Pocahontas: a Native man happily exchanging four birds for an axe from a colonist. RITA: But it wasn’t long before relations between the two groups broke down. Find out why in Jamestown, Part 2! 'Part 2' A girl, Rita, and a robot, Moby, are eating lunch on a beach. They finish their sandwiches. Moby has mustard all over his face when he's done. RITA: Aaaaand we're back! The man of the hour was Captain John Smith, who'd established trade relations with the Pawhatan. An animation shows the colonist John Smith. RITA: Smith's talent as a leader got him elected President of the governing council. Other colonists near John Smith raise their hands. They are voting for him to be President. RITA: He immediately laid down the law: "He that will not work shall not eat." So, after a year of scraping by, the settlers finally began farming. Which, it's kinda hard to believe took them that long! An animation shows John Smith supervising some farmers. Crops start to sprout. RITA: But luck was against them: The area was having its worst drought in memory. Their crops failed just as hundreds of new settlers were arriving. The blistering sun rises in the sky. It becomes extremely hot. The crops wither and die. A large ship with many more settlers appears off the coast. RITA: The English began demanding food from their neighbors… sometimes violently. An animation shows a colonist approaching a Native American man and woman. The colonist aims his gun at them. He demands some of their food. RITA: Wahunsenacawh had had enough: An animation shows Wahunsenacawh and some Native American warriors. He pounds his staff into the ground. RITA: His warriors surrounded Jamestown's walls, trapping everyone inside. An animation shows an aerial view of Jamestown. Figures of the Native American warriors approach the colony from every side. RITA: The settlers called that winter the Starving Time. They ate snakes, rats, horses, leather, … An animation shows several Jamestown colonists huddled in a small room. One colonist cooks a snake over a fire. Another colonist chews on a piece of leather. A rat scurries across the room. RITA: … Sometimes even their own dead. A colonist shakes his sleeping friend's shoulder to see if he's dead. The napping man wakes up and glares at his friend. RITA: For the second time in two years, the colony lost most of its people to disease and hunger. An animation shows Jamestown in the snow. There are several fresh graves marked with crosses. MOBY: Beep? RITA: Nope, Smith escaped that particular episode. He'd been seriously injured in a gunpowder explosion… An animation shows John Smith reclining in a boat. Another colonist lights a pipe near a keg of gunpowder. The gunpowder keg catches fire, and explodes. RITA: … And had to ship back to England. He never returned. An animation shows John Smith on a ship bound for England. His arm is bandaged, and his face is charred. MOBY: Beep? RITA: The Virginia Company kept Jamestown limping along. Every now and then, they would send more people and supplies. An animation shows a map of Virginia. The figure of a ship lands in Jamestown. Several colonists and barrels of supplies emerge from the ship. RITA: New settlements were established on better land. But still, no gold was found, and the company was close to going broke. Meanwhile, hostilities between the settlers and the Powhatan continued: The animation shows a larger area of the map. Powhatan dwellings mark where the Native Americans live. A few more colonist settlements appear on the map. RITA: The English burned down villages, slaughtered families, and seized land. Several Powhatan dwellings on the map catch fire. RITA: The Powhatan responded in kind, with raids on the settlers. Arrows strike several colonist settlements on the map. They also catch fire. RITA: The English dealt a major blow when they kidnapped Pocahontas in 1613. An animation shows several colonists surrounding Pocahontas. RITA: After a year of imprisonment, she married a settler named John Rolfe. It's likely she was trying to help bring an end to the war. And that's just what happened—a peace was agreed upon later that year. An animation shows the marriage of John Rolfe and Pocahontas. Several settlers and Native Americans watch. Nobody looks happy. RITA: And a few years later, the settlers finally did strike gold… in a sense. John Rolfe had begun growing tobacco. Turns out, Virginia's warm climate was ideal for it. An animation shows John Rolfe in his storage shed. It is filled with the tobacco he grew. RITA: Soon they were exporting huge amounts back to Europe. An animation shows several colonists working in a tobacco field. A ship sails for Europe in the background. The ship is filled with tobacco. RITA: The colony quickly shifted from survival mode to developing a society. Women were recruited to sail to Virginia and start families. An animation shows men, women, and children walking through Jamestown. RITA: A local legislature, the House of Burgesses, was formed. It was based on England’s Parliament, with representatives elected by landowners. An animation shows the members of the House of Burgesses. They are all men smoking pipes. RITA: Their first order of business: setting a price for tobacco. John Rolfe addresses the House of Burgesses. He holds out a tobacco leaf for the assembly to see. RITA: Less than a month later, the first shipment of enslaved Africans arrived in Jamestown. An animation shows a ship with enslaved Africans packed together below deck. The ship arrives in Jamestown. RITA: Tobacco planters quickly saw the potential of an unpaid workforce. Over time, big plantations came to rely entirely on slave labor. An animation shows enslaved people toiling in the tobacco fields. MOBY: Beep? RITA: Right, the Virginia Company of London… they never did manage to turn a profit. They were so far in debt that even all that sweet tobacco cash couldn't save them. An animation shows King James scolding a representative from the Virginia Company of London. RITA: And then disaster struck their colony in Virginia. Powhatan warriors launched a surprise attack on every English village. An animation shows several Jamestown colonists in the woods. Powhatan warriors emerge from the fog. RITA: Hundreds were killed in what came to be known as the Indian Massacre of 1622. The Powhatans shoot arrows at the colonists. The colonists shoot guns at the Powhatans. RITA: The confederacy's new chief, Opechancanough, had planned the attack. He'd seen the results of trying to negotiate with the English: An animation shows Opechancanough walking through the destruction at Jamestown. RITA: An endless stream of settlers, taking over Powhatan land to start tobacco plantations. An animation shows a map of the Chesapeake Bay area. Native American lands are marked with Powhatan dwellings. The dwellings transform into tobacco leaves. RITA: He decided that the only way to stop them was force. Of course by then, it was too late. England had a foothold in America, and it wasn't going to give up now. An animation shows King James looking over a map of Virginia. RITA: King James revoked the old charter and put Virginia under direct royal control. That was the end of the Virginia Company of London… A representative from the Virginia Company of London is holding the Virginia charter. King James rips the charter out of his hands. He crumples it up and throws it away. RITA: And the start of a new war that the Powhatan could not win. MOBY: Beep? RITA: The company may have failed, but Jamestown was ultimately a success for England. An animation shows the thriving Jamestown settlement. RITA: For better and for worse, Jamestown's model was repeated across the colonies. An animation shows a map of North America's East Coast. Virginia is outlined. Outlines of other colonies appear until there are 13. RITA: European settlers were drawn to the "New World" by the lure of owning land… An animation shows settlers looking over unclaimed land in North America. RITA: Maybe striking it rich like John Rolfe… An animation shows a settler walking through a cave. He finds gold, and pumps his fist in the air. RITA: And the promise of self-rule, as every American colony set up a legislature like the House of Burgesses. An animation shows a colonist addressing his government representatives. RITA: It was the American dream before there was an America. An animation shows Moby buried in the sand. People with metal detectors approach him. The metal detectors go off. RITA: Move along boys; this is my claim. The people with metal detectors leave Moby alone. Moby smiles at Rita in appreciation. MOBY: Beep! RITA: You’re welcome. Category:BrainPOP Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Social Studies Transcripts